know how to be and anarchist?

this is mostly because yeah I say I am an anarchist but I dunno what to do. I mean preaching it and stuff is cool sometimes but what else. im kinda lost mostly because I only realized being and anarchist seemed better like a few months ago. I need help kinda knowing whatever it is other anarchists do, I guess its help for newer people too.

Been a student and practitioner of anarchist theory for almost 40 years now, there is no single way to be an anarchist. A lot will depend on your surroundings as far as the level of direct action and impact to your community, what interests you have and to what level of activism you are willing and able to devote energy to. If you are new to it all, you might want to read up on the history of global anarchist movements including the early American one that had such a profound impact on workers movements world wide. Food Not Bombs is a great introduction to actual work as an anarchist and a great focal point for meeting others that can influence your interests. If you are alone in a non urban setting then see about getting involved with helping out with your local food banks and growing your own food you may not find other anarchists but there are other organizations that are allies. The Quakers come to mind, yes they are Christians, but they are anti-dogmatics, and have been some of the best allies I have ever had. If you have any more specific questions please feel free to hit me up...

An Anarchist is, by definition, they that do not want to be oppressed nor be the oppressors. They that want the maximum amount of well being, the maximum amount of liberty, and the maximum amount of development for all human beings. ERRICO MALATESTA

In addition to the excellent insights above, I'd add that you can try to practice anarchism in your every day life. In my workplace (a school), I'm often trying to create situations in which we work non-hierarchically, situations in which workers (and students) have a greater say in their workplace. Bosses throw us scraps and we tear at each other for them; I'm often working on getting my coworkers to work collectively and creatively to address the manufactured scarcity produced by employers and by the state.

So, maybe look around at ways to implement anarchism on the scale of your daily life while also getting at the larger struggles for freedom for all.

Make sure you read a lot. Don't slap a label on yourself and say "I am this type on Anarchist and everyone has to be what I am!" and only stick to one school, read widely and learn everything you can, because diversity is strength. Don't just read anarchist theory either, but learn about other types of philosophies, like Communism, Nihilism, Egoism, Existentialism, and especially Taoism (ancient Chinese anarchism). Wikipedia is a decent place to start earning about philosophy, as it nails down the basics.

Get involved with your real tangible life. Grow & dumpster food, stand up to bullies, break your addictions, try to house up with a few friends so you can pool your resources and work less, be a beacon of virtue and resistance in your community, somebody that people can look up to. A leader (even anarchists have leaders, we just acknowledge they're flawed, power corrupts, don't take their words as gospel! Leaders earn people's trust, and can easily lose it). Don't structure your life around making money or career, structure it around creating a solid base of survival and strong friendships. The less you work, the more time you can devote to developing and implementing strategies. Start making your own political writings based off of what you believe. Distribute political literature.

It also pays to be subtle. Unless I'm talking to Anarchists about Anarchism I try to avoid using the terms and jargon. I think people rely too much on all the '-isms' without really understanding what it means in their real lives. They vomit ideologies, but don't practice any of it. Develop who you are, learn humility, learn inner strength, learn how to be alone, listen to your body and mind. Cut the bullshit and toxic people out of your life. Throw everything you own away and live out of a backpack. The less you own the more you have. A man who knows when enough is enough, has enough.

The term Anarchist is as broad or as narrow as you want to make it, what I mean is you can call yourself an Anarchist solely due to your belief that all government is inherently wrong and leave it at that. you can build on that by reading, lots of reading, be aware there are millions of texts out there on the subject some giving you more questions than answers so be prepared to read a lot. once you have a better idea of the history of Anarchism and feel more confident that you can speak to others about it then it's time to move on and find anarchist groups in your area, find out what they are all about and what they are doing to promote anarchism and what actions they are taking against the state, the best way is to get involved, get on the streets fight back against the unjust capitalist system.

It took me a while to feel confident enough to approach anarchist groups as I felt that they would laugh at me as I was a 15 year old punk back in 1979 when I decided to do something about it and join my local anarchist group they were all at least double my age, but they welcomed me as being the future of anarchism, didn't make fun of me and 40 years on I'm still organising anarchist events have built up a working class anarchist group that are well known in my area for getting shit done and we're well respected by the activist community due to being on call to support any street actions going down.

So basically all I'm saying is get familiar with the anarchist philosophy, get involved, don't be afraid, best of luck.

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